Feature Article from Hemmings Sports & Exotic Car

Audi has an enviable position today. It's the fastest-growing luxury brand in the automotive world, and its cars are almost universally praised for their advanced engineering, interior quality and exterior design. Sporty variants like the S5 coupe and five-door S7 have legions of fans. But where did those cars come from? Prepare yourself for a history lesson, courtesy of the 1974 100 Coupé S and 1982 Coupe sharing these pages.

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While the nameplate is more than a century old, most Americans will scratch their heads when asked to recall an Audi built earlier than the mid-1980s, when a damaging report--later proved false--publicly libeled the popular 5000. That car actually represented the third generation of Audi's C-platform ("C3," in Audi-speak) sedan to be sold in the United States, the first being the 1970-1977 100 that was the basis for the senior of our two feature cars, both belonging to Granville, Massachusetts, resident Rob Petschke.
As you may have surmised from these cars, Rob is a hardcore vintage-Audi enthusiast. Sharing garage space with these coupes are his pristine 1974 100LS four-door and equally minty 1984 4000 S Limited Edition, but the current fleet is only part of the 15 Audis--ranging in age from 1971 through 2001--that he and his wife, Pam, have owned or restored in the past 22 years. Why is he an Audi enthusiast, and not one of a more typical marque, we asked? "I grew up near an Audi-Porsche-Volvo-Saab-Alfa Romeo dealership," he recalls. "We had to walk past it to go to the grocery store, drive past it to get on the highway. As a kid, I spent a lot of time skateboarding on the loading dock next door. I watched the businessmen come and go in their beautiful cars.
"I loved the Porsches because every kid finds Porsches fascinating, but the Audis caught my eye--they were really classy," Rob continues. "There was also someone in the neighborhood who had an old 100LS. I used to see it driving by all the time, and he was constantly working on it. When I was in my early twenties, his car was long gone, but he passed on to me his well-worn Haynes workshop manual, which I thought was pretty cool.
"I bought my first Audi in 1991, when I was 17; I traded in a 1973 Mustang Mach 1 that my father and I had been restoring. It was a Gobi Beige 1982 5000, and I instantly fell in love. Those [early 1980s] Audis, and the era previous, have always been my favorites," he says with a smile.
If your memory is long enough to recall the 100LS, but you're stumped by the Coupé S, you're forgiven. Emissions and safety regulations meant it was never sold in North America. Of the 800,000-plus first-generation 100 series cars built from 1968 through 1976, only 30,787 were these pretty fastbacks, and 100 Coupé S experts believe that roughly 600 remain today. This example is one of just five in the United States, and it's the only right-hand-drive version. More familiar to Americans is Rob's 1982 Coupe, a second-generation B-platform car based on the contemporary 4000 (AKA the 80), and descended from the Fox. Nearly 170,000 Coupes (and from 1984, Coupe GTs) were built from 1981 through 1987, and 22,756 found homes in the U.S.
Appearances are the primary indicator of the cars' respective eras. The swoopy 100 Coupé S made its debut at the 1969 Frankfurt Motor Show, while the crisp Coupe was introduced at Paris's 1980 Mondial de l'Automobile. The C1 Coupé was a development of the first modern genuine Audi, the front-wheel-drive 100 executive-class sedan that Dr. Ludwig Kraus--head of advanced design for Mercedes-Benz, then director of development for former Daimler-Benz property Auto Union GmbH--developed in secret, against the orders of Volkswagen chief Heinrich Nordhoff. The advanced 100 was accepted for production, and was an instant sales success that re-launched the dormant brand around the world. Dr. Kraus also masterminded the Coupé S, which was built on a shortened 100 platform.
According to Audi Tradition historian Ralf Friese, this car was styled by Hartmut Warkuss, who would be Volkswagen's design chief from 1993-2003 and the creator of the Bugatti Veyron. "Warkuss started in Audi's design department shortly before the 100 Coupé S went on the drawing board, and he got the order to make a sporty coupe for Ludwig Kraus. [Kraus] wanted a two-door coupe because he had no children and was keen on coupes at that time. He gave the order to change the design of the two-door sedan to a fastback. If you look at the side line, you see Warkuss was clearly inspired by Maserati, but no Italians had a hand in drawing that car."
Equally of its time is the Coupe, a car that also came from Hartmut Warkuss's drawing board. This model derived its geometric style from that of the Giorgetto Giugiaro-refined 1978 Audi 80, and its distinctive C-pillar/quarter window treatment was influenced by Giugiaro's 1973 Audi-Karmann Asso di Picche ("Ace of Spades") show car. The Coupe was designed and developed alongside 1980's groundbreaking all-wheel-drive quattro, and was actually intended to be introduced first, Ralf reveals, but debuted almost a full year after its blistered-fender sibling. As with the 100 Coupé S, the Coupe appeared identical to the sedan from which it was derived, up to the cowl. Surprising to many is that its sloping rear deck doesn't open, hatchback-style, but rather, there's a short trunklid below the window.
The 100 Coupé S may have been expressive where the Coupe was conservative, but the two share a surprising number of traits. Both are front-wheel drive (an early Audi trademark, dating back to pre-war years), both have performance-oriented engines and sport-tuned underpinnings, and both will accommodate four adults and their luggage with surprising ease. It was a delight to spend an afternoon with Rob's four-ringed wonders, which stood out on the road by their rarity and beauty.
We got to experience the 85,000-km (roughly 53,000-mile) Rallye Red '74 first. Explaining its right-hand drive is that it was one of fewer than 1,500 C1 Coupé Ss that were assembled from CKD kits in Uitenhage, South Africa, the home nation of its original owner, from whom Rob bought the car in 2011. It's actually Rob's second Coupé S--his first was a 1973 in Marathon Blue.
This 1974 came highly recommended from a mechanic friend in Texas, where the car's first caretaker has a second home. "He said, if you'll ever want another 100 Coupé, this is the one; you have to buy it," he remembers. "Because it was a South African car and had always been garaged, it had no rust, and rust was a real issue with those C1s. It has satin black paint on the lower panels, which was advertised as an option for cars in that particular market. My friend sent me pictures of it from every angle, and I decided it would be a good counterpart for my '74 100LS. The red paint is largely original, although there are a few spots that were repainted a long time ago. It's been wet-sanded, polished and glazed, and looks pretty good for old paint. Mechanically I've gone through it--I've replaced an engine mount, the lower control arm bushings and one axle. The fuel gauge was inaccurate, so I recalibrated the sender unit. This one's a keeper, I won't ever be selling it."
The Coupé S was largely identical to its four- and two-door sedan counterparts, Rob explained, save for minor but important details. "All 1969-1974 100s had [servo-assisted] rear drums and inboard front disc brakes, but the S's discs are larger in diameter, thicker, and vented, and they're clamped by four-piston calipers. I think they're overkill, but this car stops on a dime, and braking performance is absolutely modern." Other changes between the pedestrian and sporty 100s included wider (185 vs. 165) 14-inch tires, a tilt steering wheel, a standard tachometer and upgraded interior fittings.
The 100 was introduced with a Mercedes-Benz-derived four-cylinder that was called the Mitteldruckmotor, or medium pressure engine; this term indicated that its high-for-the-day compression ratio was between that of a typical gasoline engine and a diesel. In sedan form, with a single Solex carburetor, this 1.8-liter overhead-valve engine made between 80 and 100hp. First-year 100 Coupé Ss received a twin two-barrel Solex-carbureted 1.9-liter engine with a 10.4:1 compression ratio that made 115hp. The 1.9's output was altered in late 1971, when a single two-barrel Solex 32/35 TDID carburetor and a 10.0:1 compression ratio brought 112hp at 5,600 RPM and 118 lbs ft of torque at 3,500 RPM. This remained enough to propel the four-speed manual car to 60 MPH in less than 10.5 seconds and on to a near-115 MPH top speed.
On the road, we comment on this healthy Audi's commodious interior and surprisingly pliant ride. Its suspension is by double wishbones, coil springs, tubular shocks and an anti-roll bar up front, with a solid axle in the rear supported by trailing arms, a transverse spring rod, anti-roll bar and struts; steering is manual rack-and-pinion. The S's standard 14 x 5-inch steel wheels were replaced in the period by same-sized Wolfrace alloys that wear stock-size tires.
The car's handling brings up an interesting point. Rob contrasts it against that of his equivalent low-mileage 100LS. "They cut nine inches out of the floorpan to make the Coupé, and because of that, its turn-in is much quicker than the sedan's. Even with the suspension components refreshed to as-new, it's not as tight as a comparable B2; it's cushy enough to be comfortable, but still tight enough to change direction quickly. It doesn't lean like it will tip over. The seating position is more upright than in the '82, and of course, driving it from the right side is interesting. But the lines are what appeal to me the most. I have always loved fastbacks, and always loved C1 Audis, so the 100 Coupé S is the perfect combination. I also like that the car is very uncommon, particularly here in the U.S."
Where the earlier car was exotic, the 1982 was familiar. You sit on the left in this Gobi Beige metallic Coupe, and its three-speed automatic gearbox stands in for a five-speed manual. With power-assisted steering and front disc/rear drum brakes, it's what you'd typically find in any upscale 1980s two-door...but better. The supportive sport seats are all aggressive bolsters and delightful tweed upholstery, and the combination of long roofline and long wheelbase makes the rear compartment feel roomy. That funky trunk even offers a sedan-like 15.6 cu ft of space.
The U.S.-market Coupe was based on the limited-production 4000 5+5 two-door notchback, with its borrowed-from-the-5000 2.1-liter, Bosch K-Jetronic CIS fuel-injected five-cylinder engine; it out-powered its four-cylinder 4000 counterparts by making 100hp at 5,100 RPM and 112 lbs ft of torque at 3,000 RPM. Other markets received four-cylinder Coupes.
While straight-line performance (0-60 in 10.5-13 seconds, 110-112 MPH top speed) was adequate, handling was its forte. Its suspension combined tuned MacPherson struts, lower A-arms and an anti-roll bar with a solid rear axle with integral anti-roll bar on trailing arms, a Panhard rod, coil springs and performance tubular shocks. And our feature Coupe's standard low-profile tires and alloy wheels, sized 14 x 6 inches, have been exchanged for rare four-lug, deep-lip, quattro-style 15 x 7 Ronal R8s; that substitution, plus Rob's addition of a 1984 4000 S quattro rear valance, add greatly to this car's curb appeal.
Not that this was lacking when he bought the 42,000-mile car in 2006. "This was my dream car--it struck me as the sporty version of my first Audi," he admits. In the early 1990s, Rob rebuilt a wrecked '84 Coupe GT for his brother. He found a Gobi Beige 1982 Coupe online in 2003 and attempted to buy it, but missed out. After an attempt to track down the new owner of that car, he was contacted by the then-owner of this one, who noted that our feature car was rarely driven, and deserved a home with someone who'd really appreciate it. "Buying a car sight unseen was a little scary, but when we went to the depot to pick it up, it was as if it had rolled out of a time machine--it was just about perfect," Rob grins. "To bring it back to 100 percent, I've done control arm bushings, struts, a new thermostat, the A/C compressor and a small amount of upholstery repair on the driver's seat outer bolster.
"While I have tremendous respect for the quattro Coupe of this era, I actually prefer the cleaner lines of the front-wheel-drive Coupe. This car is easier to work on, parts are easier to find and it's very reliable," he continues. "For what I have invested into my cars, I could own a very fine Ur-quattro, but I'm afraid that worrying about it would get the best of me, and keep me from driving it. My 1982 Coupe looks, runs and drives great, and the visual enhancements I've added give it an aggressive look."
We take a drive in the Coupe. "Any B2 I've owned that has a good, fresh suspension, handles really well, really tightly," Rob explains. "This is a small car, and you can toss it around. The larger wheels and tires I've fitted help it stick, although they've made the steering feel a bit heavier. With good gas struts, it stays pretty flat." His home area is hilly, and he notes that the automatic is a willing partner. "You can definitely feel it shift, like any automatic of that era, but it's very controllable with your foot. I can get it to kick down very easily whenever I want, which is good, because the five-cylinder has this growl, this distinctive sound...get it over 2,500 RPM, and it sounds beautiful."
The Coupe was a favorite of enthusiast magazines in its day, being called "a serious driver's car" (Road & Track, 1984) and "the best sports coupe in America" (Car and Driver, 1985); it was noted for its overall sophistication and high level of equipment, traits it shares with the Coupé S. But unlike the earlier car--which was positioned and priced as the marque's flagship when it was new--the later one cost less than half of the contemporary quattro's sticker price ($35,000!).
Although they're decades old, these iconic cars continue to influence Audi's design language today. Take in the fastback rooflines, upturned rear quarter windows and slender taillamps of both cars and you'll see why Audi credits the 100 Coupé S as an inspiration for the A7 Sportback's peerless style. And if you squint as you look at the shape of the A5, S5 and RS5 coupes' rear quarter window in relation to its C-pillar, you'll see that of the Coupe and quattro--not to mention the overall homage to the 1980s Coupes that was the lauded 2010 quattro Concept.
Vintage Audis will never have the following that their German counterparts enjoy, but that's just fine with Rob. "I definitely feel these cars are underappreciated. I like that Audi took chances with their engineering and had interesting ideas that accomplished their purpose, and even if some of those ideas didn't always work out in the long run, they pushed things forward," he muses. "I'm grateful that I happened to fall in love with [my first] Audi, rather than a BMW 320. Although there are more BMW enthusiasts around and more parts available for them, having something different more than offsets the frustration of parts searching. And because there are so few of us, vintage Audi people are very willing to help each other out--we're a very tight community."
1974 100 Coupé S
Base price, new: 14,400DM (estimated $5,472 exchange figure)
Average value today: $15,000
Engine type: Inline-four, iron block, aluminum cylinder head, overhead-valve
Displacement: 1,871cc
Bore x stroke: 84mm x 84.4mm
Compression ratio: 10.0:1
Horsepower @ RPM: 112 (DIN) @ 5,600
Torque @ RPM: 118 @ 3,500
Fuel delivery: Solex 32/32 TDID 2-barrel carburetor
Transmission: Four-speed manual, full synchromesh
Suspension, front/rear: Independent double-wishbones with coil springs and anti-roll bar/ solid axle with Panhard rod, tube shocks and anti-roll bar
Brake type: Front disc and rear drum, power assist
Wheelbase: 100.8 inches
Overall length: 173.15 inches
Curb weight: 2,385 pounds
0-60 MPH: 10.2 seconds
Top speed: 114 MPH